The Wine Advocate | RP 95
Published: Jan 31, 2024
Drink: 2025-2045

Outpost's 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon is a beauty, even it doesn't show quite the majestic complexity of the True Vineyard. It still offers up evocative scents of crushed stone, cassis, blackberry and blueberry. It's packed, concentrated and full-bodied in the mouth, ripe—almost creamy in texture across the mid-palate—then rich and velvety on the finish.

The vineyards that now compose Outpost have a long history. During my November 2023 visit to Napa, I had the opportunity to meet Frank Dotzler, the previous owner of Outpost (he sold to AXA Millesimes in 2018 but has stayed on as part of the agreement) and learn some of the backstory.

A tech-industry guy infatuated with wine, Dotzler first started looking for Napa land in 1997. He connected with Phillips and Harris Land Brokers, who shepherded him through the process. "[Jean Phillips (then owner of Screaming Eagle) and Ren Harris (Paradigm)] kind of took me under their wing—I'm not really sure why, a guy from Chicago—and took me around to hundreds of properties," said Dotzler. "They also helped me go around and taste lots of clonal wines."

In 1998, Dotzler purchased an undeveloped 20-acre property on Howell Mountain that would become the True Vineyard. The parts of the property that were suitable for planting were ripped up in 2000—even dynamited in some places to remove rock. The first vines weren't in the ground until 2002. In the process of developing that vineyard, it became clear that another land parcel would be needed.

Working with Phillips and Harris, Dotzler got a call about the Outpost property on a Wednesday and was on a plane from Chicago the next morning. The property had been redeveloped in the 1970s by the Lamborn family and then again in the late 1990s by Terry and Julie Pringle, who originated the Outpost name. Located just a quarter mile from the True Vineyard, it was a natural fit, and Dotzler purchased Outpost in 2003. Thomas Rivers Brown (TRB) has been the winemaker for Outpost, since he worked with the grapes as an assistant to Ehren Jordan at Turley Wine Cellars, and Outpost was TRB's first client when he struck out on his own. Dotzler sold Outpost to AXA Millesimes in 2018, but the affiliation with TRB continues. Dotzler is also partners with TRB in Mending Wall.

True Vineyard, Dotzler's original property, is bottled separately, both as a straight Cabernet Sauvignon and as a co-fermented blend that includes Cabernet Franc and Merlot. According to TRB, the core of the Cabernet Sauvignon True Vineyard is always the first three blocks, each planted to different clonal selections. One is sourced from Ren Harris at Paradigm, the See clone. Another is sourced from Jean Phillips at Screaming Eagle, referred to by TRB as the P clone (thought to be clone 7 or Bosché). And a third, is sourced from Paul Frank at Gemstone, the Jenkins clone (said to be a suitcase clone from Château Lafite-Rothschild). TRB maintains that this clonal diversity is the basis for the True Vineyard's complexity.  

Outpostwines.com

Our Estate Cabernet Sauvignon comes from the very best vineyard blocks located between 1,800 and 2,200 feet in elevation. Grapes from each block within the vineyard are fermented separately so that our winemaking team can be very selective about the lots that comprise the final blend. Wines are neither fined or filtered allowing for the full expression of the vintages' potential.

Tasting Notes
"Cassis, plums, violets, iron, and spicy red fruit berries all emerge from the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate, a full-bodied, seamless, nicely textured, and balanced Howell Mountain Cabernet. For a mountain Cabernet, the tannins are beautifully polished and integrated." - Jeb Dunnuck, Highest Barrel Score, 96 Points

Technical Informations
Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Ageing: 18 months in 85% new French oak barrels
Production: 1,140 cases
Winemaker: Thomas Rivers-Brown